Clamping attachment for harness



No. 68,565. Patented Nov. I, I898.

. MN. FARLOW. GLAMPING ATTACHMENT FOR HARNESS.

(Application filed Apr. 26, 1898.) (No Nodal.)

A HNE Y3 UNITED STATES ATENT FFICE.

JAMES N. FARLOW, OF LANDER, VYOMING.

CLAlVlPING ATTACHMENT FOR HARNESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 613,565, dated November 1, 1898.

Application filed April 26, 1898. Serial No. 678,826. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern/.-

Be it known that I, JAMES N. FARLow, of Lander, in the county of Fremont and State of \Vyoming, have invented a new and Improved Clamping Attachment for Harness, of which the followingis a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to an improved means for adjustably connecting together the parts of harness, and more particularly for detachably securing the lapping portions of a harnetug strap and a trace-strap.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple, inexpensive, and practical device to supplant the use of buckles which will be neater, stronger, and more convenient to alter in adjustment than buckles and which will dispense with the keeper-loops usually employed to hold in place the loose end of a trace which has been buckled upon the hametug at a point where the billets of the pad and girth are connected with the trace and tug straps.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of parts, as is hereinafter described, and'defined in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure l is a plan View of a hame-tug strap and trace-strap in part detachably connected by the improved device. Fig. 2 is a reverse plan View of the parts shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an edge view of the tug and hame straps held together by the improved clamp. Fig.

4 is a detached perspective View of a clamping-loop forming a portion of the improvement. Fig. 5 is a perspective View of a novel clamping-bolt and nut forming parts of the invention, and Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional View substantially on the line 6 6 in Fig. 3.

The hame-tug strap A is of the usual form, except that at the rear end a loop a is formed for the attachment of means for joining the pad-billet and girth-billet with the tug and trace straps, and as these parts of the harness are not essential in illustrating the application of the improvement to the tug and trace straps they are not shown in the drawings, and the means for their connection with the straps are also omitted.

The trace-strap B is equal in breadth to that of the tug-strap A, and a plurality of spaced perforations 1), formed in said straps, may be arranged oppositely in pairs, as indicated in the drawings by full and dotted lines.

The novel clamping device provided for detachably holding an end portion of the tracestrap B upon the tug-strap A is constructed, essentially, as follows:

A clamping-frame-lO, substantially rectangular in form, is provided, said frame comprising two side bars 0, held spaced apart in parallel planes by the transverse lower bar at and top bar 6.

Preferably the side bars a of the clampingframe are so joined at their ends to the top bar 6 and lower bar at that the side bars will be disposed diagonally when the clampingframe is in place, and the top cross-bar e has a level contact with the upper side of the trace-strap B, and the lower cross-bar d of the clamping-frame has a like engagement with the tug-strap A,as clearly shown in Fig. 3.

To adapt the clamping-frame 10 for efficient service, the top cross-bar eis preferably broadened as compared with the width of the lower cross-bar d, and the lower surface of the top cross-bar is rendered flat, while the upper surface is somewhat convex.

The top cross-bar of the clamping-frame 10 may with advantage be concaved slightly on the edge that in service is toward the front end of the trace-strap, and the rear edge thereof is convexed, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4. The lower cross-bar d is preferably convexed on both the upper and lower sides of the same, which affords a smooth finish and facilitates the sliding movement of the clamping-frame on the straps it is to hold together.

The remaining details that coact with the clamping-frame 10 to form the novel clamping attachment consist of the bolt 11 and nut 12. The bolt 11 is cylindrical in its body, having a length proportioned to the combined thicknesses of the two straps with which it is to engage, and has at one end a peculiarlyshaped head g. The head g is of considerable area and represents a segment of a circle, the body of the bolt projecting from said head at or near the center thereof, as clearly represented in Figs. 2 and 5. The segmental form of the head g provides a straight edge g and an opposite convex edge 9 The lower surface'of the head g and also the edges g 9 may be rounded to prevent abrupt shoulders, while the upper surface of the head is rendered fiat, so that in service it will have proper contact with the tug-strap A.

The bolt-body is threaded near its free end to enable the screwed engagement therewith of the nut 12, which is preferably in the form shown best in Fig. 5.

An elongated finger-hold h is provided on the nut 12, and from the under side thereof an integral nut-block h projects and is located at the longitudinal center of the fingerhold portion or wings of the nut.

The nut-block h and finger-hold portion 7b are centrally perforated and threaded to adapt the nut for a screwed engagement with the bolt-body, and each limb of the fingerhold portion h is preferably sloped upward and outward on the under side, while the corners of the limbs on the lower edges thereof are slightly rounded, for a purpose which will hereinafter be explained.

A flat washer 13 is furnished, adapted to slip loosely upon the bolt 11 and afford a hearing whereon the nut-block h may seat when the parts are assembled for service.

When a tug-strap A and hame-strap B are to be secured together, the clamping-frame 10 is slid upon-the said straps, so that the lower cross-bar (Z will have contact with the lower surface of the tug-strap when the two straps are imposed one on the other, the upper cross-bar 6 being seated upon the tracestrap B rearward from the lower cross-bar, as clearly shown in Fig. 3. The body of the bolt 11 is now passed up through alined perforations in the straps A B, which perforations lie between the cross-bars d and e of the clamping-frame 10, and the washer 13 is strung over the end of the bolt projecting above the upper strap B. The winged nut 12 is now screwed upon the bolt 11, so as to press upon the washer l3, and thus draw the two straps A B together, and it will be seen that the pressure had by one side of the squared nut-block h against the adjacent edge of the top cross-bar c of the clampingframe 10 will prevent the nut from unscrewing, there being sufficient pliability in the straps A B to permit the nut-block h to be turned when it is being-adjusted, the sloped lower sides of the wings h and the rounded corners thereof facilitating the movement of these wings over the top bar 6. The application of draft force to the trace-strap B will pull the lower cross-bar cl of the clampingframe 11 against the straight edge g of the bolt-head g, while the nut-block h is in like manner forcibly impinged upon the adjacent edge of the upper cross-bar e, which renders the novel attachment more secure than an ordinary buckle and relieves the body of the bolt 12 of part of the draft strain, as the clampingframe 10 by binding the straps A B together produces such frictional contact between said straps as will take some of the draft strain off the boltbody.

As the strap-clamps may be placed near the forward ends of the traces on a set of harness, it will be evident that the usual keeper-loops which are provided to hold loose ends of the traces from flapping may be dispensed with and neat, strong, and convenient adjustable connections for the traces on the tug-straps of harness be afforded.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. A clamping attachment for harness and other straps, comprising a looped clampingframe having diagonally-disposed side bars extended between a top cross-bar and a lower cross-bar, and a clamping-bolt having a nut, said bolt passing through alined perforations in the straps to be clamped, which perforations lie between the cross-bars of the clamping-frame, substantially as described.

2. A clamping attachment for harness and other straps, comprising a looped clampingframe having diagonally-disposed side bars extended between a top cross-bar and alower cross-bar, a clamping-bolt having a winged nut and a segmental head, the straight edge of said head being adapted to contact with the lower cross-bar of the clamping-frame, and a washer Whereon the nut has a bearing in service, substantially as described.

3. A clamping attachment for harness and other straps, comprising an essentially rectangular clamping-frame, having two diagonally-disposed side bars that connect a bottom cross-bar and a top cross-bar, a clamping-bolt having an enlarged segmental head, the straight edge of which is adapted in service to contact with the lower cross-bar of the clamping-frame, a nut for the bolt, comprising an angular nut-block from which project opposite wings, one side of the nut-block having enforced contact with an adjacent edge on the top cross-bar of the clamping-frame, when draft strain is had on the straps held together by the clamping device, substan tially as described.

JAMES N. FARLOVV.

Witnesses:

SAML. O. PARKS, J12, WM. II. DICKINSON. 

